Emmitt Smith likes Cowboys chances next season

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Emmitt Smith caught a lot of flak from the Cowboys players at the end of this season for his 7-9 prediction.

Smith wouldn’t offer a prediction for next season while appearing on a video blog for the Dallas Morning News and the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Host Committee this afternoon, but he did say he thinks the Cowboys “are very close” after finishing 11-5 this season and reaching the second-round of the playoffs.

“With the growth I’ve seen from a leadership standpoint, the talent has always been there, they are right there,” Smith said. “And thank you Miles Austin for making me (look bad) with my 7-9 pick. Without you, at best they might be 7-9. He gave them like a shot of B-12 in the arm and they will be able to build on that. From Kansas City on, all he did was make play after play.

“All I want the Cowboys to do is stay hopeful and remember what they went through last year. Remember how much growth they had internally as a team and gauge that and take that to the next level. Just like we did when we went to Detroit in 1991 and got our teeth kicked in the first round of the playfofs. We came back the next season and we were all excited about the success we had the year before and we wanted to build on that. That’s the chance this team has right now.”